Hanford child abduction: Why was the Amber Alert sent out 13 hours late?

HANFORD, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – On Tuesday, a woman was found dead in Hanford and her children were missing. The children were found safe within 24 hours, but the Amber Alert was sent out more than 13 hours after the discovery of the death. The Kings County Sheriff’s Office says it was not a mistake, but a “tactical decision.”

Deputies first learned about the homicide and kidnapping on Tuesday around 4 p.m. At 10:30 p.m., they posted online that an Amber Alert had been issued but, people did not report seeing the alert until 11:30 a.m. the next day.

“When the paper Amber Alert was sent out to the media and locally out on social media, we believed at that time that it was going to go out statewide,” said Kings County Sheriff Dave Robinson.

According to deputies, there are two levels of Amber Alert: the lower level includes a fact sheet that can be shared locally, and the higher level is a more comprehensive alert that notifies the state. CHP is responsible for the latter.

A few hours after sharing the local alert, the sheriff’s office learned emergency pings tracked the suspect’s cell phone to Mexico. They also learned that “a tactical decision was made to not let it go out statewide – yet.”

During a Thursday morning press briefing, the sheriff’s office explained that while the community’s help is appreciated, “when you put that out statewide, it inundates investigators with all these tips that are coming in.”

Although the statewide notification of the Amber Alert was delayed, deputies say rescue efforts began immediately.

“Our agency immediately enlisted the help of the FBI. They were able to begin coordinating with local and federal authorities in both the United States and Mexico with the sole purpose of getting the children returned to safety,” said Robinson.

Detectives were able to negotiate the surrender of the suspect and the safe return of the children to authorities at the border crossing of San Ysidro, near San Diego, Thursday morning.